How to Play Street Hockey

In street hockey, the gameplay itself looks like ice hockey. There's a face-off to start play, in which the two centers vie for initial control of the ball. Each team tries to send the ball through the opposing goal, passing between players and covering their designated space on the court.

When there's a penalty or regulatory violation, the non-offending team, typically the center, gets control of the ball (and in the case of a penalty, the offending player sits out for one minute). In regulation street hockey, as described by NHL Street, penalties and violations are similar to ice hockey and include:

Keep Reading Below

Violations

Icing -- Shooting the ball from one end of the court (on your side) to the other without any opposing player touching it

Off-sides -- Stepping (or skating) over the center line before the ball crosses it

Off-sides pass -- Passing the ball over the center line to a player who was off-sides

Out-of-bounds -- Hitting the ball beyond the boundaries of the play area

Penalties

Butt-ending, cross-checking, or slashing -- Hitting an opposing player with the end or shaft of your stick or swinging it at him or her, respectively

Charging or checking -- Slamming yourself into an opposing player or slamming an opposing player into a stationary object

Also forbidden? Fighting. If you hit another player, you're out for the rest of the game.

To this end, do yourself a favor and appoint that ref. This is street hockey, not debate team: There are no points for winning an argument. Just grab a stick, slap down some cinder blocks and score a goal.

For more information on street hockey and other team sports, check out the links on the next page.